Rebound Effects: Blind Spots in the Socio-Ecological Transition of Industrial Societies

Rebound effects have been discussed in micro- and macroeconomics since the 1980s, but until today have garnered too little attention in disciplines outside economics or in applied sustainability politics. This article provides an overview of the existing research, raises critiques, and points out open questions. It makes the case for analysis of psychological rebound effects in order to broaden the narrow micro-economic perspective on consumer behavior. It explains ideological divergences in present rebound research on energy efficiency-induced economic growth impacts and suggests that existing econometric evidence on macroeconomic rebounds might rather underestimate the scope of these effects. Furthermore, this article comprehensively addresses producer-side and market-level rebound effects, which so far have only achieved marginal attention even in the economic rebound literature. The various rebound effects identified may result in reducing the energy savings potential of technical efficiency improvements by 50 percent or more. Therefore, research on a socio-ecological transition of industrial societies is well-advised to take due note of rebound effects and foster policies and measures that can contain them.